Ye Ran
by mayumi.ako
Summary: The meaning behind the name. After centuries of moving from place to place, searching for his Master, Frankenstein decides to stay put in Korea.


Disclaimer: I do not own Noblesse.

* * *

Frankenstein woke up with a gasp.

A quick glance around him revealed no living presence, human or otherwise. It looked like he was in some kind of warehouse, whether it was still in use was a bit doubtful. A large number of crates could be seen strewn about the place, with several layers of dust coating them.

He found himself leaning against a wall, with some thin ragged cloth covering his body. He could see the swirling snow past the broken glasses of the windows.

The building provided a measure of shelter from the snow, but only marginally. He could still feel the tendrils of cold seeping from the cement floor. Wind along with snow drifted in from the shattered windows.

Initially, He did not even remember where he was or the reason he was here. A dull ache was throbbing in his head and suddenly everything came crashing back to him…. _Years of loneliness…centuries of searching in vain… Failure after failure…_

He put his head to his hands and exhaled slowly. _Still he would not- could not- bring himself to stop searching for his Master. He never will._

He tried to raise himself up from the floor but found his legs wobbled under him. He sat back down and took an inventory of his body. He couldn't see any visible injuries. _Why was he so weak?_

He felt an empty ache in his stomach.

 _Ahhh. When was the last time I he ate?_

He keeps forgetting to eat, too obsessed with moving from place to place, looking for any indication of his Master's whereabouts.

 _How embarrassing. For him to be in this weakened state for such a reason!_

Soft footsteps echoed from the far end of the room. He was instantly on guard. Damn. I can hardly defend myself in this condition. He shifted awkwardly, hoping the darkness would help conceal him.

A small pale figure emerged from the shadows. She was very thin and the rags she was wearing only made it all too obvious. She stopped a few paces from him and placed a loaf of bread on the floor.

She then retreated hastily when he reached out his hand. She shook her head and settled herself on top of a crate.

"Thank you," his croaked. The bread was a little stale but it helped ease the emptiness in his belly.

The little girl peered at him from under her lashes, and pulled at her clothes protectively.

From the slant of her eyes, he must be somewhere in the East. Was she Japanese? Korean? Chinese? He was not fluent in a any of those languages but tried talking to her anyway. She seemed to respond when he spoke in Korean.

"Where am I?" he asked.

She pointed outside to the falling snow and said "Anjeonhan."

 _Safe. Was she taking care of him?_

"Do you have anything to drink?" When she didn't answer, he mimed drinking from a cup.

She nodded enthusiastically and walked towards the back. She came back with a pan filled with what he could only assume was melted snow.

"Mui," she said happily. Like before, she left the pan on the ground, a few paces away from him. "Mui," she repeated and mimed drinking from a cup.

He took the pan of water and drank from it slowly. It was freezing cold but the liquid was welcome to his parched throat.

"Thank you," he smiled at her.

* * *

This arrangement continued for a few more days. The snow continued to fall outside, so he was stuck in the building. He wasn't strong enough to leave anyway.

The girl came and go as she pleased. Although he didn't see her regularly, he would always wake to see some kind of fruit or bread on the floor, along with the pan of melted snow.

Sometimes he would wake to see her watching him with curious eyes. She wasn't very talkative, but he suspected that it was because of a lack of words instead of a quiet demeanor. Her vocabulary was very basic at most, consisting of one word sentences.

"What is your name?" he asked one day. She looked at him blankly, still smiling sweetly.

He pointed to himself, and said, "Frankenstein." Then he pointed back at her.

Her eyebrows furrowed in thought. She pointed at him and said, "Frankenstein." Then she pointed at herself, "Frankenstein."

He tried again.

He pointed to the pan of melted snow, "Mui." He pointed at himself, "Frankenstein." Then he pointed at her questioningly.

She seemed to understand this time. She mimed drinking from a cup and said, "Mui!" then pointed at herself, "Ye Ran!" She smiled happily.

"Ye Ran?" he asked. She nodded, her eyes sparkling.

"Ye Ran, Nice to meet you." He smiled at her.

* * *

He woke up to the sound of the wind howling inside the room. She looked towards the windows but only saw a sheet of white.

He looked around to see if Ye Ran was anywhere near. I

 _t's too dangerous to be outside now._

He tested his limbs and slowly pushed himself upright. At least he could stand now without staggering.

"Ye Ran?" he called out. No reply.

He walked around the room, looking to see if she was sleeping in a corner somewhere. He found an open crate that she was probably using as her bed. A pile of rags could be found inside, as a makeshift bed, he supposed. A collection of pots and pans where lined beside it, all filled with snow in various stages of dissolving.

An hour had passed and she still did not come back. He was getting uneasy now; he made up his mind and went outside.

The snow was blinding, and he could only see a few feet in front of him. He slowly trudged up the road in search of the little girl. He didn't have to look far. The echo of pleading cries drifted towards him from the wind. It seemed to come from somewhere ahead of him. In his weakened state, he shuffled as fast as he could towards the sound.

"You thief!" a voice bellowed. "You dirty little thief!" A sound of metal thudding on stone.

 _Ye Ran!_

As he rounded the alleyway, he saw the crumpled body of the girl slumped against the wall. A trash can lay near here with its contents strewn everywhere. A burly man stood above her wiping his hands on his coat.

"Serves you right!" he spat. "You belong with the trash."

The man turned around and came face to face with a monster. A hand suddenly grabbed his throat and he was thrown backwards in to the snow.

"How dare you?" Frankenstein loomed dangerously over him, his foot stepping on his throat. "How dare you?!" His foot pressed harder. The man desperately clawed at his leg. "You like picking on little girls?"

Dark power spilled over into his hands, but before he could even strike, the man sputtered and fell unconscious.

"Humans are such weak creatures," he said distastefully. He lifted his foot from the man's throat and kicked him away from him.

The dark power slowly receded from his hands and he turned to see the lifeless body of Ye Ran. He kneeled over her body and his expression softened as he took her into his arms. "Such fragile things, we humans are," he said softly.

He took the bread that was clenched tightly in her hands, and looked up at the white sky.

The snow had stopped falling.

* * *

A/N: This story just dropped in my lap while on the bus on my way to work. I have no idea what Ye ran means, I asked google, but he wasn't sure. Haha. Maybe it's a person? Whatever.

I was just speculating why after centuries of searching, Franky suddenly made a home in Korea. Of course, he might have several homes in other countries, who's to say that he didn't also put up schools in other places? He has a limited time to stay in one place, since he doesn't age. Thanks for reading. Reviews please!


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